It's one of my favorites to serve to a dude who has never really seen me cook. It comes together in like 15 minutes and makes a really tasty appetizer. Sadly dude now has seen most of my kitchen tricks.

Yes, but I haven't, and I want to learn this trick myself! heh.

Tzatziki - greek yogurt (8 ounces or so), 1/2 to 1 whole cucumber (peeled and seeded, chop it and salt it and leave it for 10 minutes then press out the excess water), juice of half a lemon or up to a whole lemon, four cloves of garlic (smashed and minced), two tablespoons of dill, salt and pepper to taste. Leave it overnight for best flavor - lasts up to a week or two.

Sear the scallops in a screaming hot cast iron pan filled with butter and just barely browned garlic. Make sure you don't overcook. Serve the scallops over dollops of tzatziki. Boom, done.

PrivateCaboose:Or my favorite - home steaming a bunch of blue crabs in equal parts water and beer. Cover them in Old Bay. Serve with butter and cajun seasoning. Mmmmmmm.

Try some JO spices, especially their #2 on crabs. I'll have my internet operation back up in the coming months (had to shut it down due to fatherhood, too busy for everything), and if you remember to check my profile in a couple months I'll have that info back up. I ship crabs and spices and everything else all over the country.

So when it comes to fish I have a couple of thoughts. 1) Most of the fish we eat in our house we catch. So there was a lot more diversity when we lived in ND. We eat a lot of trout now. B) I like to keep fish simple. I am not one who will eat Walleye because it doesnt taste like fish. Truth is I like the flavor of fish so most of my recipes will not disguise the flavor of fish, they will enhance it.

That being said here is how my MIL taught me to cook croaker and it works equally well with Rainbow Trout.

Take however many Rainbows you have caught and cleaned.

Lightly brush them with sesame oil.

Evenly salt them with kosher salt

Coat the bottom of a frying pan with sesame oil (this will depend on the size of your pan)

Heat on medium to medium high heat until water dropped in pops.

Fry fish on both sides until skin is golden and flesh flakes but is still firm.

dolphkhan:The only "sea"food I cook is freshwater stuff I've caught myself. I'll order it at restaurants, but I've never actually cooked it at home.With sunfish or trout, I usually just use some salt, pepper, lemon, and butter, and have it with some sauteed farmstand asparagus or foraged fiddleheads, depending on the season. Yeah, our Bass might be runty in New England, but we grow some mean asparagus.

If I lived in New England, I would not hesitate to get fish and cook it myself.

Nabb1:I used to eat a lot of tilapia until a marine biologist friend of mine ruined it for me.

My wife doesn't care for fish much, so I rarely cook it. I do grill shrimp stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in pancetta.

The vast -- and I mean VAST -- majority of the tilapia on the American market is farmed (it's all farmed) in Asia. In places where there's not much in the way of regulation. Shipped in frozen, thawed, and sold to an unsuspecting public.

the biggest redneck here:PrivateCaboose: Or my favorite - home steaming a bunch of blue crabs in equal parts water and beer. Cover them in Old Bay. Serve with butter and cajun seasoning. Mmmmmmm.

Try some JO spices, especially their #2 on crabs. I'll have my internet operation back up in the coming months (had to shut it down due to fatherhood, too busy for everything), and if you remember to check my profile in a couple months I'll have that info back up. I ship crabs and spices and everything else all over the country.

My boyfriend is a Maryland boy - I'm pretty sure he'd murder me if I used anything other than Old Bay. No need to ship crabs to the DC area :)

DGS:It wasn't until we got cast iron to cook on that I really felt good about cooking salmon. We'd always just bake it and I was only mildly fond of how it came out. Searing it until the skin is crispy, with dill and salt, then getting the top a quick sear to finish, turned out fantastic. Here's an example of one I did that wifey and I were both pleased with.

[i.imgur.com image 383x400]

It really does make a difference. I only liked salmon raw before I started doing it that way.

PrivateCaboose:the biggest redneck here: PrivateCaboose: Or my favorite - home steaming a bunch of blue crabs in equal parts water and beer. Cover them in Old Bay. Serve with butter and cajun seasoning. Mmmmmmm.

Try some JO spices, especially their #2 on crabs. I'll have my internet operation back up in the coming months (had to shut it down due to fatherhood, too busy for everything), and if you remember to check my profile in a couple months I'll have that info back up. I ship crabs and spices and everything else all over the country.

My boyfriend is a Maryland boy - I'm pretty sure he'd murder me if I used anything other than Old Bay. No need to ship crabs to the DC area :)

JO is based in Marlyand, it's what most of the crab houses use. A bit less spicy than OB, with a healthy dose of rock salt. If you've ever wondered what they're using that's so salty, that's it.

And I'm getting a kick out of this thread because I own and operate a seafood market.

What kind of seafood and do you ship? Its hell to get good fresh seafood in Montana. This could open up a whole new market for you... Seriously!

Everything, shipped a box to Missoula last week. I did it for several years, but then got too busy with home life to keep it all going. Wish I had shut down the walk-in side and kept the web biz going instead. It'll get started back up in the coming weeks.

And I'm getting a kick out of this thread because I own and operate a seafood market.

What kind of seafood and do you ship? Its hell to get good fresh seafood in Montana. This could open up a whole new market for you... Seriously!

Everything, shipped a box to Missoula last week. I did it for several years, but then got too busy with home life to keep it all going. Wish I had shut down the walk-in side and kept the web biz going instead. It'll get started back up in the coming weeks.

Im pretty sure I have EIP. So when you are up and running let me know. Hell my office alone could probably make it worth your while!

DGS:That looks interesting.. I just have no idea what that annatto tastes like. Methinks I'll have to try that out and see what the flavor is like. With wifey's tastes so different from mine, we often have to find middle ground. :D

It's a carribbean/yucatecan thing. I bought some annatto spice mix when I was in Belize and brought it home and made chicken, I've been a huge fan of annatto ever since. The one I posted is a Rick Bayless thing, though. I can't explain the taste, it's sorta its own thing. Not weird though.

make me some tea:DGS: That looks interesting.. I just have no idea what that annatto tastes like. Methinks I'll have to try that out and see what the flavor is like. With wifey's tastes so different from mine, we often have to find middle ground. :D

It's a carribbean/yucatecan thing. I bought some annatto spice mix when I was in Belize and brought it home and made chicken, I've been a huge fan of annatto ever since. The one I posted is a Rick Bayless thing, though. I can't explain the taste, it's sorta its own thing. Not weird though.

Deets? I was looking to vacation there in December but it's been hell finding something that includes meals.

It's one of my favorites to serve to a dude who has never really seen me cook. It comes together in like 15 minutes and makes a really tasty appetizer. Sadly dude now has seen most of my kitchen tricks.

Yes, but I haven't, and I want to learn this trick myself! heh.

Tzatziki - greek yogurt (8 ounces or so), 1/2 to 1 whole cucumber (peeled and seeded, chop it and salt it and leave it for 10 minutes then press out the excess water), juice of half a lemon or up to a whole lemon, four cloves of garlic (smashed and minced), two tablespoons of dill, salt and pepper to taste. Leave it overnight for best flavor - lasts up to a week or two.

Sear the scallops in a screaming hot cast iron pan filled with butter and just barely browned garlic. Make sure you don't overcook. Serve the scallops over dollops of tzatziki. Boom, done.

And I'm getting a kick out of this thread because I own and operate a seafood market.

What kind of seafood and do you ship? Its hell to get good fresh seafood in Montana. This could open up a whole new market for you... Seriously!

Everything, shipped a box to Missoula last week. I did it for several years, but then got too busy with home life to keep it all going. Wish I had shut down the walk-in side and kept the web biz going instead. It'll get started back up in the coming weeks.

Im pretty sure I have EIP. So when you are up and running let me know. Hell my office alone could probably make it worth your while!

Will do. Put in 2,800 square feet of new tile on the retail side last month, re-did all the plumbing... with my daughter's health getting better all the time, the web biz will be the #1 priority in the coming months. Will be in touch by mid-summer at the latest...

make me some tea:DGS: That looks interesting.. I just have no idea what that annatto tastes like. Methinks I'll have to try that out and see what the flavor is like. With wifey's tastes so different from mine, we often have to find middle ground. :D

It's a carribbean/yucatecan thing. I bought some annatto spice mix when I was in Belize and brought it home and made chicken, I've been a huge fan of annatto ever since. The one I posted is a Rick Bayless thing, though. I can't explain the taste, it's sorta its own thing. Not weird though.

Sounds totally worth a try to me, and I like Bayless, so that works. Thanks for the idea. And that again gets me back to "let's do dinner", heh.

Since the wife and I moved to Alaska, we've been catching massive amounts of fresh salmon and halibut. I cook it every way I can, but one way I love is ceviche, especially in the summer.

Take two pounds of salmon fillets, and cut it into half inch chunks. Then add some diced red onion, chopped tomatoes, two teaspoons of salt, some chopped fresh cilantro,, then cover everything with half a cup each of lemon and lime juice. Add some hot sauce or cayenne pepper to taste. Then let everything marinate in the fridge for a few hours.

I use it as a dip for tortilla chips, but my wife loves it straight out of the bowl.

devildog123:Since the wife and I moved to Alaska, we've been catching massive amounts of fresh salmon and halibut. I cook it every way I can, but one way I love is ceviche, especially in the summer.

Take two pounds of salmon fillets, and cut it into half inch chunks. Then add some diced red onion, chopped tomatoes, two teaspoons of salt, some chopped fresh cilantro,, then cover everything with half a cup each of lemon and lime juice. Add some hot sauce or cayenne pepper to taste. Then let everything marinate in the fridge for a few hours.

I use it as a dip for tortilla chips, but my wife loves it straight out of the bowl.

I've never done this but I keep seeing it. I really have to give it a try.

Filet the bastards and soak them in lemon juice, wasabi mustard, and a little bit of sweet white wine. I take 2 boxes of cornbread mix(although I'll be changing since I bought my grain mill). Add salt/pepper to taste, and give them a good coating. Fry 'em up in coconut oil.

the biggest redneck here:Nabb1: I used to eat a lot of tilapia until a marine biologist friend of mine ruined it for me.

My wife doesn't care for fish much, so I rarely cook it. I do grill shrimp stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in pancetta.

The vast -- and I mean VAST -- majority of the tilapia on the American market is farmed (it's all farmed) in Asia. In places where there's not much in the way of regulation. Shipped in frozen, thawed, and sold to an unsuspecting public.

They are poop eaters. Fish farms began stocking them to eat the poop generated by the other fish being raised. Then they figured out they can sell the tilapia, too. No matter where they came from, they were eating poop. Either questionable, chemical and hormone-laden poop or all natural organic poop, but it was poop just the same.

Nabb1:the biggest redneck here: Nabb1: I used to eat a lot of tilapia until a marine biologist friend of mine ruined it for me.

My wife doesn't care for fish much, so I rarely cook it. I do grill shrimp stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in pancetta.

The vast -- and I mean VAST -- majority of the tilapia on the American market is farmed (it's all farmed) in Asia. In places where there's not much in the way of regulation. Shipped in frozen, thawed, and sold to an unsuspecting public.

They are poop eaters. Fish farms began stocking them to eat the poop generated by the other fish being raised. Then they figured out they can sell the tilapia, too. No matter where they came from, they were eating poop. Either questionable, chemical and hormone-laden poop or all natural organic poop, but it was poop just the same.

BusketsMcBride:Upvote the threads he said. We'll greenlight the good threads he said.

Unfreakable, we did not mean food threads!

Actually, whenever there's a good TFD thread, also use the "Notify admins" link if it's got a lot of votes. Admins can clear out all of TFD with one click, and if we're processing a big queue, we don't always take the extra step of looking at what's been upvoted there before we get into the usual stuff.

PrivateCaboose:Nabb1: the biggest redneck here: Nabb1: I used to eat a lot of tilapia until a marine biologist friend of mine ruined it for me.

My wife doesn't care for fish much, so I rarely cook it. I do grill shrimp stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in pancetta.

The vast -- and I mean VAST -- majority of the tilapia on the American market is farmed (it's all farmed) in Asia. In places where there's not much in the way of regulation. Shipped in frozen, thawed, and sold to an unsuspecting public.

They are poop eaters. Fish farms began stocking them to eat the poop generated by the other fish being raised. Then they figured out they can sell the tilapia, too. No matter where they came from, they were eating poop. Either questionable, chemical and hormone-laden poop or all natural organic poop, but it was poop just the same.

So? Don't catfish do the same, and crustaceans too?

My main problem with tilapia is that it's pretty flavorless, and not very healthy as far as fish goes.

First you gotta have a fryer or boiler, with a propane or NG burner to put it on. Thus:

And some crawdads of course. 4-5lbs per person if they're big eaters. Put them in a cooler and fill with water and a heavy shake of salt, let them sit 5 or so minutes, and then let the water out. This will purge them. Don't leave crawdads in standing water. They'll die as soon as the oxygen runs out. They can pull oxygen from the air instead, just let some water spray on them to keep them from drying out. Pull out any dead ones you happen to see.

Fill the pot about 2/3 of the way with water, and drop in a stick of butter, and a bottle of crawfish/shrimp boil, and a bag of seasoning (your favorite brand) and a generous shake of chinese pepper. Bring to boil. Fill the basket with crawdads, and lower very carefully in to the pot. Return to boil, and wait 5 minutes, then turn off the gas and steep for 10 minutes. Then dump the crawdads into a cooler (or directly on a table). Add more seasoning for the next batch. If you're doing corn and potatoes, boil them first (they'll take longer than the crawdads).

Be very very careful with that much boiling water. Gloves and pliers are heavily recommended.

PrivateCaboose:make me some tea: DGS: That looks interesting.. I just have no idea what that annatto tastes like. Methinks I'll have to try that out and see what the flavor is like. With wifey's tastes so different from mine, we often have to find middle ground. :D

It's a carribbean/yucatecan thing. I bought some annatto spice mix when I was in Belize and brought it home and made chicken, I've been a huge fan of annatto ever since. The one I posted is a Rick Bayless thing, though. I can't explain the taste, it's sorta its own thing. Not weird though.

Deets? I was looking to vacation there in December but it's been hell finding something that includes meals.

It was a Yucatan cruise I took in 2005. Just visited for the day. Snorkeled with stingrays at Caye Caulker and had the best fish burrito of my life on the dock.

DGS:Sounds totally worth a try to me, and I like Bayless, so that works. Thanks for the idea. And that again gets me back to "let's do dinner", heh.

Yeah give it a shot! It works equally well on fish as it does meat and veggies. Probably be good with roasted potatoes too, never tried that though. Best under the broiler or pan fry in oil until it's crisped up. Break it up and make tacos out of it or just serve the filet with a veggie.

The headline title made me mentally reminisce about my filipino step mothers cooking. I never learned a damn things name, but so much was awesome...

Chicken marinated in something that makes it turn dark and grey colored, and then bbqed.Big stuffed shrimp, breaded and deep fried. The stuffing was some kind of ground pork.Thin, clear colored noodles with small chunks of chicken, assorted veggies, snow peas, etcChunks of beef and/or pork in a dark, oily sauce, eaten on jasmine rice.Meatloaf made with beef, pork, and lamb, topped with bacon, haven't had a meatloaf I loved since.

It's been 20 years, but every time I think of all of it, I want to find myself a nice filipino girl who knows how to cook filipino food.

/opening the fridge and finding a pot with what appears to be nothing but slimy water and a fish head was the downside. /Not what this teenager wanted to eat, ever.

Place everything in a small pot and warm on the stovetop just until you hear a light sizzle.Let the oil cool to room temperature and strain out all the solids

Place 2 pounds peeled shrimp in the cooled marinade and refrigerate 4-6 hours.Remove shrimp from marinade and thread onto skewers, leaving a fingertip-width gap between themGrill shrimp over medium high indirect heat until done, basting often